27.09.2016

World-famous accordionist Aidar Gainullin was reincarnated into the hero of Kafka — he became insect of “Conversion” (in this story is Kafka’s travelling salesman Samsa wakes up to find has turned into a scaled creature). Action, which our journalists held in Berlin, mixed literature and music.

photo: Ksenia Korobeinikova

On Sunday blocked a half-Berlin: the morning began marathon’s world — first roller, then veloceleste with manual transmission, the curtain — runners, abysmal. However, we have actionists “MK”, your mileage. At noon they sat down on the benches around the fountain “Neptune” near the red town hall and the Alexander-Platz, sewn to a black jacket, black balloons is enough to suit the insect of the famous “Metamorphosis” by Franz Kafka, written 105 years ago.

A year before the death of 40-year-old Franz was in Berlin together with his beloved 25-year-old Dora Diamant, and it was the last breath of happiness and freedom before the final attack of tuberculosis. Stitching together a costume, we’re waiting for the main character — a nasty beetle, flour which musical and artistic we will play great accordionist Aidar Gainullin living in Germany.

“Bahovskoj the Toccata, they always cry”

Ten hour there is a Aydar with his friend Andreas Bitter — driven wheelchair and dragged the accordion, zaparkovat poor, the car three kilometers from the center (Hello marathon). Gainullina were warned not to take the most expensive of their instruments is hinted about apples and other elements of the catering, which “unexpectedly” could throw into a hero by the grateful Germans.

Last preparations. Aidar is trying on the skin of the beetle, dissatisfied with the abundance of balls in the places where the strap on the accordion. Prudently puts down black lacquered biker helmet and sunglasses.

— But the glasses are extra. Will Safinat in the eye with a Apple — warn the musician with a world name, just celebrated its 35th anniversary solo album in the Berlin Philharmonic is the main concert hall in the world.

— Hey, isn’t there too, huh? — Aydar shuddered, staring at the foam fruit ordered another in Moscow (we foolishly believed that they are more real, but because of the tough film when throwing the shot felt exactly the same — Ed.). For samples of the Aidar just chunk the apples in Andreas, he almost dropped the accordion.

Watch for the red town hall when the time comes. Time. Actionist-a boy hoisting himself on the head of a black garbage bag with a slit for the face, so as not to choke, to back zamatyvaem tape inviting poster in German — “Schmeißt Ihn auf Äpfel. Wer selber keine Sünde hat!” (“Throw the apples if you are sinless”). Actionist-girl takes a large basket with two dozen apples, on the back of another poster — “you don’t make money!”.

And the task such: in an hour of time (if the police don’t twist) pass — through music and physical suffering — the whole path of the hero “Transformations”, and this is known to be the only breadwinner in a large family traveling salesman Gregor Samsa, who “woke up one morning and found him on his bed turned into a terrible insect: the abdomen is divided curved scales, and pitifully thin legs helplessly swarmed before my eyes”.

The stroller initially was purely a functional item: to sit down and just play in Berlin without special permission not need to move, so we decided a crippled beetle to provide transport. The police — meters for two hundred diverted to the marathon, you can start.

— Start with organ Toccata in d minor Bach — whisper bug.

— I agree. They will hear it — just cry, chills the soul, — Aydar sits on the stroller, obviously wide spreading the bottles for the famous loud coming — TA-da-da-Ah…

A strange procession starts slow way around the fountain “Neptune”: in front of the young lady-peasant woman with a basket of fruit, then a stroller with a strange creature in the balls and helmet, driven by a man in a black pouch. Fileuse people reflexively reaches for selfie sticks.

And Vivaldi beetle mischievously hung on the ceiling

Who remembers “the metamorphosis”, the one move Apple is clear — when Gregor in the image of the insect is finally out of his room and ran through the apartment, the family thought it was too, and my father decided to bombard him with apples: filled with pockets content which stood on the sideboard, vases and now, the moment taking accurate aim, was throwing in the son of one Apple after another.” One of them firmly lodged in Gregor’s back between the scales, and eventually sgnew led to inflammation and, as a consequence, painful death.

But even before the persecution, despite the critical discomfort from lying on the back and lack of appetite, the beetle could enjoy what hung legs up on the ceiling… and this topic is a brief bliss between solid thrash Aydar earnestly repelled, playing “Winter” from “seasons” Vivaldi.

— Can you please throw. Let me show you how (the Apple flies into the Aidar. — Ed.).

The burghers at first awkward and then quite precisely fall on the shoulder of an accordionist, and then on to the accordion. Felt, people respect violence the permitted scope.

“Look,” the plea Gainullin drawn to us — whether it is that they threw my driver in a black plastic bag on his head?

* * *

People gradually added. The poster that money is not necessary, wrap the girl around the waist, and the words do not need to suddenly become visible. Walking around, seeing a familiar money, nod approvingly, come to the actionist, in the bag, handing one or two euros. The bag prevents access to the pockets of the shirt, the poster holds down the pants, folding the coins you have in the boot.

I don’t want to throw an Apple, it is written about sin, ” says the woman.

— Have you read Kafka? There is a symbol of the fall father bombarded his son — tell her.

— I’m afraid of hurting you.

But this is an isolated case. Rest as if nothing had happened directly or canopy launch an Apple or an empty bottle of coke in the procession, resulting in the square is necessary to arrange the slalom, so as not to collide with all this stuff (according to the story — in the room of the bug began to store all the garbage and filthy). Aydar, meanwhile, starts De Profundis (“From the depths”) Sofia Gubaidulina — the entire path of the insect from passions to enlightenment…

— Essentially, “becoming” is a very deep story with many subtexts, — then say Gainullin, but I read it literally: the father of a family, a lot of people earning, at one point became useless. The beetle is a symbol. Or cancer. He could get cancer: feel, believe the same… and now the ex-colossus — weak and lonely. All turn away sharply and society, and family. And he-he what can do? No effort, no money, just one big BURDEN of continuous capital letters. And only at the tomb all relieved to say — “he bought it, and the glory of God.”

photo: Ksenia Korobeinikova

* * *

…Berlin 1923 was for Kafka’s “sugar” and not “poison”, but could not suppress a wild picture of Germany between the two world wars — with soaring unemployment, inflation, the rise of extremism and violence, the threat of rolling nation towards anarchy.

Like the cries of the crowd and threatening newspaper headlines of those years flying in Aydar random, sighting apples motley folk, gathered in the modern and busy Alexander Platz.

Especially teenagers pick fruit off the floor, rather unusual occasion.

And you can still?

— Throw only apples?

— Is he so bad playing?

Playing beetle at this point, the waltz from the Suite “the Revizsky fairy tale” Schnittke, a kind of naked sarcasm in the low registers. The Aidar time as possible with the chair, comically to Dodge projectiles. The Germans attentive to the words spoken and written, a thoughtfully stop wanting explanations of action.

Get him outta here! — exclaimed the sister. — We need to get rid of the thought that this is our Gregor. For too long we believed in it, and this is our misfortune. Whether it’s Gregor, he would have realized that people cannot live with such an animal like him.

“Flying over time” and death

The action approaches its climax — it is unnecessary, the beetle had disappeared, according to the story Kafka. Aydar gently rises from the wheelchair, pushing it with my foot. Stroller with the poster drives a meter and falls. Torn from the fall poster carries the wind. Our beetle along the accordion slowly settles on the ground near the fountain. People in a light daze, surprised see what happens. The balls prevent the beetle is free to lie on your back; a separate burst. Finally, Aydar falls, hoisted the accordion in abdomen; hot plastic and virtuosic theme from “Flying over time” — melancholic works by contemporary Finnish composer-accordionist Petri Makkonen’s of.

— I first time played lying down, “Zhuk says,” and it is extremely difficult, awful costume, it was terribly uncomfortable, these beads everywhere: it is impossible to pull the bellows, tremolo remove. The registers that are switched from top to chin, and I have a neck ball sticking out! And first his head move, then just tap on the valve. Make fun of me plenty, friends.

Even cyclists, returning with medals after the marathon, suddenly brake upon seeing a strange black figure in a helmet, sprawled on the ground.

— “Flight” — and if sitting down to play very complex thing, and lying and all worn out. You, above all, to Makkonen’s video does not show (by the way, many Germans after the action, asked where the music Petri download. — Ed.). Elbow rests, bellows push is not, have to be combined. But I liked it, despite all the savagery of the action. I think now implement this technique in the recitals, the audience looked at you, lying on top.

…If the first game opus Petri something like classical hits of Vivaldi, by the end it starts like a top, with incredible speed and desperation. Two or three final songs, and “Gregor, like his former family, is also believed to be disappeared. When the window is all lit up, he was still living. Then his head involuntarily dropped completely, and he weakly took his final breath. The maid came early in the morning; she decided that the bug purposely lying so still, pretending to be offended. Soon realizing what happened, she made big eyes and whistled:

— Look, it is dead, it’s lying there, quite dead!”.

Hands Aydar, one after another falling to the side. He is not moving. One of us, actionists, leans over the body, taking the hand to the probe pulse. The beetle did not. On Alexander Platz hangs pause. The red hall punches the bell: two hours of the day. Finally, the body eagerly fits a girl with an Apple:

You think maybe I could throw in it?

“Don’t throw away a poster of your show! I will keep the memory!”

When Aidar stands, the situation is somewhat discharged.

“As soon as the maid disposed of the body of Gregor, the family left the apartment, deciding yourself to take the day off: went to ride on the tram in the city. The car in which they were sitting by themselves was totally engulfed by the warm sun. Happy, they discussedprospects for the future, what are, on closer examination, turned out not bad…”.

— How fortunate that was not the police, ” says our beetle, piercing the balls with a car key — yet on such attacks need to take permission.

We are exposed, putting off her black bags and posters. To Gainullin perfect couple: he’s covered in tattoos, she is stylishly dressed.

— It’s just magic, not music, ” exclaims the guy in Russian, although with a slight accent, — anywhere we can listen to you? May, in social networks or on disks?

Word by word, it turns out that it is a Russian family living in Hamburg, arrived on the weekend in Berlin; the girl — engineer in a German company, the guy’s a tattoo artist. But the amazing thing is that he is a native of the Chuvash Republic, from Batyrevskogo district, where parents Aydar…

And well managed: all had to meet in Berlin! — smiling young man. If you want a tattoo in the form of a beetle, alive or dead, always contact.

One of the actionists fold poster, Throw apples!” and drags him to the nearest urn. Whatman no zapihivaetsya to narrow the gap, we have to push. In the same moment that comes over the elderly, intelligent-looking German, waving his arms:

No no no no!

Actionist reflex pulls the paper, thinking that you can’t put such large sheets in a normal box.

— Please give me — suddenly asked the intellectual — what’s your show called? The quality of music is exceptional.

— Yes, in fact, show it. We decided to illustrate the musical life and death of a salesman Gregor Samsi turned into an insect.

— And my wife want to read your poster and think about it: “Throw, if they themselves are free from sin.” Freedom from sin. It’s a biblical subject. And these apples lying everywhere. I recently just thinking about it… because my time is approaching. A great epitaph.

* * *

I want to encourage everyone to be tolerant at least to their loved ones, ” says Aidar — I took it and quietly got up out of the wheelchair, but look around — how many real persons in wheelchairs, and not always along with them is accompanying. And it is the richest country of Europe. Let not the death of the afflicted loved makes us free, untying his hands and forcing you to ride on the tram from happiness in a Sunny day, and our concern will be the unwavering synonymous with personal freedom, to continue not I had to throw apples at the main square…

Yan SMIRNITSKY, Ksenia KOROBEINIKOVA, Berlin

Watch the video on “105th anniversary “Metamorphosis” Kafka is dedicated to: “the death of the beetle in the heart of Berlin””